How India fares against other young nations

Many nations got their freedom after India. And like India, many of these countries had to find their feet and make a fresh economic start.

If you compare India to younger nations based on per capita income, you will realise that other countries have prospered far better.

Per capita income, also called as income per person, shows prosperity of a country.

Courtesy: Forbes

Do you think India can over take any of the following countries? Tell us what you think about the country’s economic future?

India

Rank: 8

Per capita income: $3,900

GDP: $1,825 billlion

Population: 1220.8 million

Date of Independence: August 15, 1947

From whom: United Kingdom

Questions are being raised on India’s economic future. The opinion is divided on India’s ability to weather the current slowdown.

The country is struggling with weakening rupee that has been breaching its all-time-low mark against dollar.

At the same time, policymakers have not been able to bring down inflation, which has affected businesses severely.

Foreign investors, too, are shying away from investing in the country because they feel that India’s policies are unfavourable.

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Brunei

Rank: 7

Date of Independence: January 1, 1984

From whom: United Kingdom

GDP: $16.6 billion

Per capita income: $39,595

Population: 0.42 million

The country’s economy is driven by export of oil and natural gas. Revenues from the petroleum sector accounts for over half of Brunei’s GDP.

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Singapore

Rank: 6

Date of Independence: August 31, 1963

From whom: United Kingdom

GDP: $276.5 billion

Per capita income: $50,641

Population: 5.46 million

Singapore has a highly trade-oriented economy. The country has prosper thanks to the government's policies which are pro-business.

Though the country does not have natural resources, the main revenue earner for the Singapore is export of services, electronics, and chemicals.

When Singapore separated from Malaysia it was a really poor country and people lived in badly overcrowded conditions. With almost zero natural resources, it was purely government policies that transformed the country.

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United Arab Emirates

Rank: 5

Date of Independence: December 2, 1971

From whom: United Kingdom

GDP: $358.9 billion

Per capita income: $65,612

Population: 5.47 million

It is true that oil and gas contribute to the country’s economy, but tourism is one of the main sources of revenue for the United Arab Emirate.

The construction boom of recent years have helped to diversify UAE's sources of revenue. Nationwide, there is currently $350 billion worth of active construction projects.

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The Bahamas

Rank: 4

Date of Independence: July 10, 1973

From whom: United Kingdom

GDP: $8 billion

Per capita income: $25,134

Population: 0.32 million

Still considered as a developing nation, tourism is the highest contributor (about 60 per cent) in the country’s GDP followed by offshore banking.

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Ireland

Rank: 3

Date of Independence: April 18, 1949

From whom: United Kingdom

GDP: $210.4 billion

Per capita income: $44,017

Population: 4.78 million

Low corporate tax of 12.5 per cent helped the country to attract best companies in the world. The economy of Ireland is driven by services and high-tech industries.

Country’s high growth rates from 1995 to 2007 earned it the title of Celtic Tiger.

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Kuwait

Rank: 2

Date of Independence: June 19, 1961

From whom: United Kingdom

GDP: $173.4 billion

Per capita income: $64,222

Population: 2.70 million

Petroleum accounts for over 43 per cent of the country’s economy. Kuwait has 10 per cent of the world’s oil reserve. The country is also an exporter of fertilizer.

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Qatar

Rank: 1

Date of Independence: September 3, 1971

From whom: United Kingdom

GDP: $183.4 billion

Per capita income: $89,902

Population: 2.04 million

Another economy driven by its large reserve of oil and gas. Petroleum accounts for more than 70 per cent of the total government revenues.

Before the exploitation of oil and gas, Qatar was a poor pearl fishing country.